PM vows better child care services to boost birth rate

SEOUL, March 24 (Yonhap) -- Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Friday that the government will make efforts to improve child care services, as the nation is struggling to tackle the world's lowest birth rate.

Han made the remarks as he visited a child care center in Seoul earlier in the day, Han's office said in a statement.

"The low birth rate is based on complex causes, such as jobs, housing, education and child care, but first of all, it is important to establish a child care and care environment that young people can experience," Han said.

Han said the government will expand customized child care services so that parents can look after their children at any time.

The country's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime, sank to 0.78 in 2022, well below the replacement level of 2.1 that would keep South Korea's population stable at 51.5 million.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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